When asked about Hollywood’s “fast zombie” trend during an NYCC panel, the father of the genre simply delared “zombies don’t run.”Well, if anyone should know, it’s George A. Romero.

Romero has been out of the zombie game since his 2009 film Survival of the Dead, but now he’s back, and he’s adding vampires to the mix! Romero will be penning a 15-issue comic series for Marvel called Empire of the Dead launching in 2014. Former Daredevil and Halo artist Alex Maleev will bring the series to life, and the cover image shown at the NYCC panel features a zombie with a vampire bite on its neck…

Despite the abundance of monsters, Romero says that like all his stories, the comic has a strong human element. We’re not sure if he means there will be a focus on human drama a la The Walking Dead, or if perhaps the zombies themselves will be showing signs of humanity. After all, in his recent films, Romero’s zombies have been getting increasingly self-aware and are shown working together in collective groups. In any event, we’re pretty excited to see what Romero can bring to the comics medium!

Oh, and in case we didn’t love him enough, Romero helped a fan cross an item off his bucket list by giving him a hug. Awww!